Fabric treatment article and composition

ABSTRACT

The invention provides an article for fabric treatment comprising a substrate releasably impregnated with a fluid treatment composition adapted for fabric cleaning and freshening by contact of the fluid composition with the fabric to be treated during a tumble drying process, the fluid treatment composition comprising: a glycol ether solvent; water; a non-ionic surfactant; and a perfume characterised in that the glycol ether solvent is present in the composition in an amount which is miscible with the water present in the composition.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to a fabric treatment article andcomposition, more particularly to a tumble dryer sheet carrying acomposition for treating fabrics in a tumble dryer and for pre-treatingsuch fabrics to remove stains.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

[0002] Tumble dryer sheets adapted for domestic dry cleaning purposesare a relatively recent addition to the range of fabric treatmentproducts currently known. There are currently at least two commercialembodiments of such materials, namely the Dryel™ product of The Procter& Gamble Company and the Custom Cleaner™ product of Creative ProductsResource, Inc. Both commercial products comprise hydroentangled sheetsimpregnated with a fabric treatment composition. The Dryel™ product issold with a separate pre-treater for stain removal and the CustomCleaner™ product is sold as a combined stain removal and fabrictreatment product. Both commercial products instruct the consumer to usethe fabric treatment sheet inside a bag, into which the fabrics to betreated are placed before sealing the bag and placing it in the tumbledryer.

[0003] WO-A-99/10586 (The Procter & Gamble Company) relates to a baglessdry cleaning kit having one or more carrier sheets and from 200 grams to1,000 grams of a liquid cleaning/refreshment composition. The“cleaning/refreshment composition” is primarily water and perfume withan emulsifier and optional solvents such as ethanol and isopropanol. Thekit includes a separate pre-treating composition which is delivered tothe fabric by means of an absorbent stain removal article impregnatedwith the pre-treating composition. WO-A-97/07278 (The Procter & GambleCompany) relates to a dry cleaning process using a bag. WO-A-97/29178(The Procter & Gamble Company) relates to a dry cleaning sheet which isoleophilic and can acquire a strong electrostatically positive chargewhen passed across the surface being cleaned. WO-A-97/32004 (The Procter& Gamble Company) relates to a dry cleaning sheet which has a permeablecoversheet which it is said provides a more uniform distribution withinthe tumble dryer of the cleaning composition on the dry cleaning sheet.WO-A-97/45516 (The Procter & Gamble Company) discloses a phase stableliquid refreshment and cleaning composition comprising butoxy propoxypropanol, water, optional nonionic and a phase stabilising amount of analkyl sulphate and/or alkyl ethoxy sulphate surfactant. WO-A-96/30471(The Procter & Gamble Company) discloses a cleaning compositioncomprising at least 4% butoxy propoxy propanol and other ingredients,including an emulsifier. WO-A-93/23603 (Creative Products Resource,Inc.) discloses a fabric cleaning kit comprising a bag and a cleaningsheet impregnated with a composition comprising a gelling agent,surfactant and a solvent.

[0004] It is an object of the present invention to provide an improvedform of fabric treatment article.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] Accordingly, the present invention provides an article for fabrictreatment comprising a substrate releasably impregnated with a fluidtreatment composition adapted for fabric cleaning and freshening bycontact of the fluid composition with the fabric to be treated during atumble drying process, the fluid treatment composition comprising:

[0006] a glycol ether solvent;

[0007] water;

[0008] a non-ionic surfactant; and

[0009] a perfume characterised in that the glycol ether solvent ispresent in the composition in an amount which is miscible with the waterpresent in the composition and the total surfactant content is not morethan 2% by weight of the fluid treatment composition.

[0010] The provision of a fabric treatment article impregnated with afluid composition comprising no more glycol ether solvent than ismiscible with the water present in the composition removes the need toinclude any polymeric emulsification aid in the composition. This isdesirable both to reduce the expense of the composition and to avoid thedeposition of residues on the treated fabric left by the emulsifier. Thefluid treatment composition of the invention is free from polymericemulsification aids.

[0011] The fluid treatment composition used in the invention isnon-gelled having a viscosity comparable to water. The composition isfree from gelling agent. The composition may be readily applied to anabsorbent carrier sheet and may be released from the carrier sheet totreat a stain on a fabric by wiping, rubbing or pressing the impregnatedcarrier sheet against the fabric. Surprisingly, it is found that theamount of glycol ether in the fabric treatment articles according to theinvention provides an effective cleaning performance even at therelatively low levels of glycol ether needed to maintain watermiscibility. The cost of the composition is further reduced bymaintaining the amount of glycol ether solvent therein at a relativelylow level and the avoidance of phase separation in the composition bymaintaining water miscibility further reduces the risk of stainingduring the treatment process.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Preferably, the glycol ether solvent is present in thecomposition in an amount of from about 1.0% to about 4.5%, morepreferably from 1.5 to 3.5%, and most preferably from 2.0 to 3.0% byweight of the composition. A particularly preferred fabric treatmentarticle according to the invention is impregnated with a fluidcomposition which comprises about 2.5% glycol ether solvent.

[0013] The glycol ether solvent for use in the fabric treatment articlesof the invention preferably has a volatility of less than that of butylacetate. Glycol ether solvents are lower-(alkoxy)- orlower(alkoxy)lower(alkoxy)-ethers of ethanol or isopropanol. The loweralkoxy groups generally contain from 1 to 6 carbon atoms. Preferredsolvents include dipropylene glycol n-propyl ether, dipropylene glycolt-butyl ether, dipropylene glycol n-butyl ether and dipropylene glycolmethyl ethanoate, tripropylene glycol methyl ether, tripropylene glycoln-butyl ether or mixtures of one or more thereof. Preferably the glycolether solvent has a flash point of above 90° C. Preferably the glycolether has a lower odour.

[0014] The fabric treatment article according to the inventionadditionally includes a perfume and a non-ionic surfactant as essentialcomponents and it is preferred that the non-ionic surfactant is presentin an amount sufficient to solubilised the perfume in the composition.

[0015] The perfume is preferably present in an amount of from about 0.1%to 1%, more preferably from about 0.25% to 0.75% and most preferablyfrom about 0.5% to about 0.75% by weight of the composition.

[0016] Preferably, the non-ionic surfactant is present in the fluidcomposition in an amount of from about 0.1% to about 2%, more preferablyfrom about 0.5% to about 2% by weight, most preferably from about 1.1%to about 2% by weight of the composition. Non-ionic surfactants that maybe used include the primary and secondary alcohol ethoxylates,especially the C₈₋₂₀ aliphatic alcohols ethoxylated with an average-offrom 1 to 20 moles of ethylene oxide per mole of alcohol, and moreespecially the C₁₀₋₁₅ primary and secondary aliphatic alcoholsethoxylated with an average of from 1 to 10 moles of ethylene oxide permole of alcohol. A preferred non-ionic surfactants are commerciallyavailable from Shell Chemicals under the trade name NEODOL 25-9 andNEODOL 25-7 which are C₁₂-C₁₅ primary alcohol ethoxylates having 9 and 7moles of ethylene oxide respectively. Non-ethoxylated non-ionicsurfactants suitable for use in the invention includealkylpolyglycosides, glycerol monoethers and polyhydroxyamides(glucamide).

[0017] The composition may comprise other surfactants provided the totalsurfactant content does not exceed 2% by weight. Preferably the totalsurfactant content is not more than 1.5% by weight. Higher surfactantcontents may lead to staining during the treatment process.

[0018] The fluid composition may further comprise an anionic surfactant.In this case, the amount of anionic surfactant present in the fluidcomposition is less than the amount of non-ionic surfactant presenttherein. Anionic surfactants are well known to those skilled in the art.Examples suitable for use in a fabric treatment article according to theinvention include alkylbenzene sulphonates, particularly C₈₋₁₅ linearalkylbenzene sulphonates, alkyl ether sulphates and alkyl ethercarboxylates. A preferred anionic surfactant is sodium lauryl ethersulphate ethoxylated with 2 ethylene oxide molecules.

[0019] The composition may further comprise an amphoteric surfactant.The amphoteric surfactant may be present in an amount not more than theamount of non-ionic surfactant present therein. Amphoteric surfactantsare well known to those skilled in the art and include sultaines,belaines, alkyl amine oxides, zwitterions, amphopropionates andcarboxylates. Preferred amphoteric surfactants are alkyl amine oxides ofthe formula:

R R¹ R² N⁺ 0

[0020] in which:

[0021] R is selected from the group alkyl, alkylarylalkyl, arylalkyl,alkylaminoalkyl, and the sulfonated derivatives thereof,alkylamidoalkyl, or alkoxyalkyl wherein the total carbon atom content ofthe R group is no more than about 22 carbon atoms, and

[0022] R¹ and R² independently represent alkyl of from 1 to about 6carbon atoms and the hydroxy-substituted derivatives thereof.

[0023] Preferably R is alkyl of 10 to 20 carbon atoms and R¹ and R² aremethyl.

[0024] Exemplary formulations for use in the invention comprise abalance of non-ionic, anionic and amphoteric surfactants. The anionicsurfactant is present in an amount less than the non-ionic surfactante.g. up to 50% by weight of the non-ionic surfactant. The amphotericsurfactant may be present in an amount no more than the non-ionicsurfactant. A suitable weight ratio is about 40:20:40 non-ionicanionic:amphoteric surfactants. It has been found that such a surfactantmixture allows phase stable formulations to be produced with lowsurfactant content, below 2%, by weight surfactant mixture. Suchformulations offer minimum levels of water marking and good perfumedelivery.

[0025] The fluid composition may further comprise fatty acids, forexample C₈₋₂₄ alkyl or alkenyl monocarboxylic acids.

[0026] Preferably saturated fatty acids are used, in particular hardenedtallow C₁₆₋₁₈ fatty acids. Examples of preferred fatty acids includeoleic acid, lauric acid or tallow fatty acid. Other optional ingredientsinclude builders, preservatives and sequestrants.

[0027] Water is the predominant component of the formulation andgenerally comprises at least 90% by weight, preferably at least 94% byweight of the formulation.

[0028] The substrate may comprise any materials which will absorb thefluid treatment composition and withstand the tumble drying processwithout disintegrating. Suitable materials include woven and non-wovenfabrics. A preferred substrate is a 50/50 rayon/polyester hydroentangledmaterial commercially available from PGI.

[0029] The substrate is generally impregnated with from 20 to 40 g,preferably 25 to 35 g of the fluid composition which is sufficient totreat up to four garments in a tumble drying cycle.

[0030] The invention further provides a process for treating a fabriccomprising the step of contacting the fabric with a fabric treatmentarticle according to the invention in a tumble dryer and conducting atumble drying process. Preferably, the fabric to be treated and thefabric treatment article are placed directly in the tumble dryer withoutany other form of containment. The invention provides a further processaccording to the above comprising the preliminary step of treating astain on the fabric by direct application, with a wiping, rubbing orpressing action, of the article to the fabric.

[0031] In another of its aspects, the invention provides a fluidcomposition for use in the manufacture of an article according to theinvention. Also according to the invention is the use of an articleaccording to the invention in a domestic dry cleaning process.

[0032] The invention will now be more particularly described withreference to the following Examples.

EXAMPLES

[0033] In the Examples the following components were used:

[0034] Perfume

[0035] Galaxy 80 commercially available from IFF.

[0036] Preservatives A mixture of the following components: ComponentParts by weight 1,2 benzisothiazolin-3-one 160 sodium hypochlorite  23-iodo-2-propynyl butyl carbamate 200

[0037] Fluid compositions for impregnation onto the carrier substratewere prepared by the following generic method:

[0038] About 5-10% of the total water was added to a vessel and heatedto about 40° C.

[0039] The non-ionic surfactant and the glycol ether solvent were addedto the heated water and mixed for 10 to 15 minutes.

[0040] The mixture was allowed to cool to below 30° C. and the perfumewas added with mixing for about 10 to 15 minutes. Alternatively or alsoa milling step could be employed here.

[0041] The remaining water, in combination with the preservative, wasadded and mixed for about 10 to 15 minutes.

[0042] The resulting fluid composition was then dosed onto an absorbentcarrier sheet comprising a 50/50 rayon/polyester hydroentangled materialavailable commercially from PGI.

[0043] An alternative formulation procedure is as follows:

[0044] About 40-50% of the total water was added to a vessel togetherwith the preservative and heated to around 40-60° C.

[0045] The non-ionic surfactant and the glycol ether solvent were addedand mixed.

[0046] The remaining water at ambient temperature was added and mixed.

[0047] After confirming that the temperature of the mixture had fallenbelow 30° C., the perfume was added and mixed.

[0048] The resulting fluid composition was then dosed onto an absorbentcarrier sheet comprising a 50/50 rayon/polyester hydroentangled materialavailable commercially from PGI.

[0049] Three example fluid compositions were prepared using the first ofthe above methods: Example 1 Example 2 Example 3 Neodol 25-9 2.0% 1.5%1.1% DPnB 2.5% 2.5% 2.5% Perfume 0.55% 0.55% 0.55% Preservative 0.04%0.04% 0.04% Water To 100% To 100% To 100%

[0050] DPnB dipropylene glycol n-butyl ether.

[0051] These compositions, pre-dosed onto non-woven sheets, were testedfor cleaning performance on a range of:

[0052] Stain types (eg make-up, tomato juice, coffee, redwine, lipstick)

[0053] Fabrics (eg cotton, Tencel™, wool, polyesters, “polycotton”blend)

[0054] Fabric colours (eg red, green, navy, cream, pink, purple, brown).

[0055] The fabric treatment procedure was as follows:

[0056] Pre-treatment Method:

[0057] A folded paper, cotton or other absorbent towel was placed on ahard surface underneath the stained area of fabric.

[0058] The stain was contacted firmly with the impregnated carriersubstrate and a gentle rubbing was employed until the stained area wasvisibly wet and the stain was transferred onto the paper towel.

[0059] The treated area was dampened with water to flush out anyremaining stain and the treated area was then dried using a hair dryeror an iron.

[0060] Tumble Drying Method:

[0061] Up to four fabrics were placed in a domestic tumble dryer.

[0062] A single carrier substrate dosed with (xg) of the fluidcomposition was placed in the dryer on top of the fabrics.

[0063] A tumble drying process was conducted at low temperature forabout 30 minutes.

[0064] Each of Examples 1, 2 and 3 were found to give good cleaning andfreshening performance.

Example 4

[0065] The following formulation was prepared: Component weight % Neodol25-9 1.5 DPnB 3.33 Perfume 0.75 Preservative(s) 0.04 Water to 100

[0066] The formulation had a higher perfume content than Examples 1 to 3and required a higher solvent level. The formulation gave good cleaningand freshening performance.

Examples 5 to 7

[0067] These Examples demonstrate a mixed surfactant system withdifferent glycol ether solvents. The following formulations wereprepared: Example 5 Example 6 Example 7 Component % by weight % byweight % by weight DPnB 3.33 — — BDGE — 3.33 — TPM — — 3.33 Surfactant1.4  1.4  1.4  Perfume 0.67 0.67 0.67 Preservative 0.04 0.04 0.04 Waterto 100 to 100 to 100

[0068] The surfactant comprised an anionic surfactant primary alkylsulphate (PAS) Hostapur SAS 30; a non-ionic surfactant Neodol 25-7 andan amphoteric surfactant amine oxide, Aromox C/12W. The surfactants werein the weight ratio

[0069] PAS:Neodol 25-7 : Aromox C/12W of 20:40:40.

[0070] BDGE:butyldiglycol ether

[0071] TPM:tripopylene glycol mono-methyl ether

[0072] The formulations were prepared by making a premix of the solvent,Neodol 25-7 and perfume under stirring. A main batch of PAS, amineoxide, preservative and water was prepared and the premix added understirring. Stirring was continued until a closer solution was produced.

Examples 8 to 10

[0073] The following formulations were prepared: Example 8 Example 9Example 10 Component % by weight % by weight % by weight TPM 3.33 3.333.33 Neodol 25-9 1.0  0.9  0.85 Perfume 0.67 0.67 0.67 Preservative 0.040.04 0.04 Water to 100 to 100 to 100

[0074] The samples were stored at 0, 20 and 37° C. and observed.Examples 8 and 9 were more stable than Example 10 with no separation ofcomponents after eight weeks.

Examples 11 to 14

[0075] The following formulations were prepared: Example 11 Example 12Example 13 Example 14 Component % by weight % by weight % by weight % byweight TPM 3.0 2.5  2   1.5  Neodol 25-9 1.0 1.0  1.0  1.0  Perfume 0.670.67 0.67 0.67 Preservative 0.04 0.04 0.04 0.04 Water to 100 to 100 to100 to 100

[0076] No separation was observed after storing for eight weeks as inExamples 8 to 10.

1. An article for fabric treatment comprising a substrate releasablyimpregnated with a fluid treatment composition adapted for fabriccleaning and freshening by contact of the fluid composition with thefabric to be treated during a tumble drying process, the fluid treatmentcomposition comprising: a glycol ether solvent; water; a non-ionicsurfactant; and a perfume wherein the glycol ether solvent is present inthe composition in an amount which is miscible with the water present inthe composition and the total surfactant content is not more than 2% byweight of the fluid treatment composition.
 2. An article according toclaim 1 wherein the glycol ether solvent is present in the compositionin an amount of from 1.5 to 3.5% by weight of the composition.
 3. Anarticle according to claim 2 , wherein the glycol ether solvent isselected from dipropylene glycol n-butyl ether and tripropylene glycolmono methyl ether.
 4. An article according to claim 3 , wherein theglycol ether solvent is dipropyline glycol n-butyl ether.
 5. An articleaccording claim 3 , wherein the non-ionic surfactant is the onlysurfactant and is a C₁₂-C₁₅ primary alcohol ethoxylate and present in anamount of from 1.1 to 2% by weight of the composition.
 6. An articleaccording to claim 1 , wherein the fluid composition comprises a mixtureof non-ionic, anionic and amphoteric surfactant wherein the amount ofanionic surfactant is less than the amount of non-ionic surfactant andthe amount of amphoteric surfactant is not more than the amount ofnon-ionic surfactant.
 7. An article according to claim 1 , wherein theperfume is present in an amount of from 0.5 to 0.75% by weight of thecomposition.
 8. An article according to claim 1 , wherein the fluidtreatment composition is free from polymeric emulsification aids andgelling agents.
 9. An article according to claim 1 , wherein the fluidtreatment composition comprises at least 94% by weight water.
 10. Anarticle according to claim 1 , wherein the fluid treatment compositionfurther comprises one or more preservatives.
 11. An article according toclaim 1 wherein the fluid treatment composition comprises: 1.5 to 3.5%by weight dipropyolene glycol n-butyl ether 1.1 to 2.0% by weightC₁₂-C₁₅ primary alcohol ethoxylate 0.5 to 0.07% by weight perfume aneffective amount of preservative balance being water, said compositionbeing free of polymeric emulsification aids and gelling agents.
 12. Anarticle according to claim 11 wherein the fluid treatment composition ispresent in an amount of from 20 to 40 g.
 13. A process for treating afabric comprising the steps of:
 14. providing contacting the fabric withan article comprising a substrate releasably impregnated with a fluidtreatment composition adapted for fabric cleaning and freshening bycontact of the fluid composition with the fabric to be treated during atumble drying process, the fluid treatment composition comprising: aglycol ether solvent; water; a non-ionic surfactant; and a perfumewherein the glycol ether solvent is present in the composition in anamount which is miscible with the water present in the composition andthe total surfactant content is not more than 2% by weight of the fluidtreatment composition and contacting the fabric with said article in atumble drier and conducting a tumble drying process.
 15. A processaccording to claim 13 wherein said fluid treating composition of saidarticle comprises: 1.5 to 3.5% by weight dipropyolene glycol n-butylether, 1.1 to 2.0% by weight C₁₂-C₁₅ primary alcohol ethoxylate, 0.5 to0.07% by weight perfume, an effective amount of preservative, balancebeing water, said composition being free of polymeric emulsificationaids and gelling agents.
 16. A process according to claim 13 wherein thefabric to be treated and the fabric treatment article are placeddirectly in the tumble dryer without any other form of containment. 17.A process according to claim 13 comprising the preliminary step oftreating a stain on the fabric by direct application, with a wiping,rubbing or pressing action, of the article to the fabric.
 18. Use of anarticle according claim 1 in a domestic dry cleaning process, using atumble drier.